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Board authorizes limited rulemaking to create optional special-education technician certificate
Summary
The Board voted to open ARM Title 10, chapters 55 and 57 for negotiated rulemaking to add a voluntary 'special education technician' certificate with proposed requirements (40 online modules, 1,000 hours of verified work or an approved alternative, four introductory college courses and supervision by a special-education teacher).
The Board of Public Education on Wednesday authorized OPI to begin a limited negotiated rulemaking process to create an optional special-education technician certificate, a new voluntary pathway OPI officials said is intended to address special-education staffing shortages in rural and small districts.
"We have a critical shortage in educators across the state, and that gets magnified in special education," Patrick Case, OPI senior manager for safety and student support, told the board. Case described the proposed certificate as a middle step between paraprofessionals and fully licensed teachers: candidates would complete 40 online modules, document 1,000 hours of verified special-education work (or an approved alternative), complete four introductory college courses in education and finish a required introductory course on Indian education.
Julie Murgel of OPI said the certificate would be voluntary and that adding it to chapter 57 (licensure) requires only OPI rulemaking while the companion changes to chapter 55 (accreditation) require negotiated rulemaking. Board members asked about transferability of coursework, how the role would be supervised in small districts, and whether the pathway would help build a pipeline to full teacher certification.
Board member Quinlan and other members supported the concept, calling it a potentially useful pipeline for paraprofessionals to advance into licensed roles; another board member said she'd seen local examples where paraprofessionals progressed to fully licensed special-education teachers.
The board moved to open the two chapters for a limited rulemaking process, discuss stakeholder input, and aim for adoption in May 2026 with an implementation date of July 1, 2026, if the rulemaking timeline proceeds on schedule. The motion passed on a voice vote.
